A Self Described Foodie

What do you get when you combine a Dachshund, a trained chef, a 1991 diesel bus and boyfriend that grew up in the restaurant industry? You get a food truck cranking out gourmet hot dogs that will make your taste buds dance. Good Dog Food Truck established in early 2011 has all of the ingredients to grow a following of fans and keep them coming back for more.

Molly and Danny owners of Good Dog have been in the food industry for several years and have a passion for serving great quality food. Molly, a trained chef has worked in upscale restaurants here in Houston for the last five years. Restaurants including Reef, you might remember seeing the Executive Chef Bryan, Caswell on the Next Iron Chef.

The concept for the food truck was born out of the idea of making all of their condiments from scratch, including homemade ketchup’s, relish and mustard. Molly jokes that the only thing that they don’t make from scratch is the cheese, which they just might make in the future. The hot dogs and buns are sourced locally here in Texas. To find the perfect hot dog Molly and Danny traveled the state of Texas trying many different dogs. The dog that they chose is quite a “Good Dog!” You can see spices in the hot dog and the taste is much better than a hot dog purchased from your local grocery store. Combine those great hot dogs with condiments made from scratch and fresh combinations like homemade dill pickles, cream cheese and pickled onions… Great taste and a party in your mouth.

They are really going all out to produce great gourmet food served from their truck. Instead of using Phase (artificial butter) to grill their hot dog buns they are using real butter and taking the time to clarify the butter (so that it doesn’t burn on the hot grill). In my experience its the simple basics that if are done right, takes food from good to great. What I saw behind the scenes, was that Good Dog is doing the little things right that make a big difference in terms of taste.

You can find Good Dog Food Truck by following them on Facebook or Twitter, they post a weekly schedule and update their locations daily. You can also visit their website at Gooddogfoodtruck.com ~ Make sure to watch the behind the scenes video above.

On a food adventure of the past I was having a difficult time finding two specific chili powders for a Bobby Flay recipe I was making. desperate times called for desperate measures. I was able to find the dried chili’s and picked up a $10 coffee grinder. A little grinding action and we were in business, we had chili de a’rbol powder and pasilla chili powder. Note to self! Don’t blow in the coffee grinder to clean the excess chili powder out! Lets just say chili powder in your eyes, burns like nothing you have felt before.

Bobby Flay, the King of the chili is a culinary genius. Known for his Southwestern style of cooking and upscale restaurants in New York City (Mesa Grill & Bar American) has “opened Bobby’s Burger Palace to fulfill a longtime dream.” For years Bobby Flay has been putting together unbelievable flavor combinations in his upscale restaurants, and now brings his talent and his innovative flavor combinations to a burger chain with five locations in the Northeast.

While in Philadelphia, PA I was really excited to be able to dine at Bobby’s Burger Palace. When it comes to burgers, I’m pretty picky. So many restaurants serve lousy burgers. That wasn’t the case at Bobby’s Burger Palace. I started out with a Pimento cheese burger, topped with pimento cheese, Cheyenne pepper and bacon. I also ordered a side order of fries which was served with a signature sauce… Classic Bobby Flay. The burger itself was the star as it should be, even with all of the other toppings. The meat was so juicy, perfectly cooked. I enjoyed my first burger so much that I decided to go with only a half of a milk shake for desert and split a second burger with a friend. The first burger was so good, that it just had to be 1 ½ burger kind of night! (The Second Burger was the Santa Fe Burger – topped with jalapenos, crunchy corn chips and queso).

The look and feel of Bobby’s Burger Palace was very comfortable and unique. I was surprised by the age range of the people sitting around me enjoying burgers. There were teenagers, adults with their young kids and even grandparents. The service as expected was top notch, fast and friendly. You order at a register as you enter the restaurant and are given a number to place at your table. Your meal is brought to you at your table and when you are done any plates are taken away promptly. If you are a fan of Bobby Flay and his food you won’t be disappointed in a trip to one of his Burger Palaces.

If you don’t live in the Northeast and just wish you could try his burgers, there is good news for you. Most of the burgers & shakes at Bobby’s Burger Palace are available in his cookbook, Bobby Flay’s Burgers Fries & Shakes. Stay tuned I’m making a few burgers from the cookbook tomorrow and will have a post up with recipes and details soon.

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